Change, Courage, Hanging In There
THEN AND NOW
In honor of the winter Olympic games in Sochi we have a special guest blogger Tai Babilonia, who was a two time Olympian and World Pair Champion with her partner Randy Gardner. Tai has generously shared some of her feelings with us here at Gratitude and Trust. And boy are we grateful. Thank you Tai. A couple of weeks ago, I attended an event to celebrate 2014 Olympic athletes and cheer them on as they marched in the Sochi… Read More
Clarity, Faith, Gratitude, Guides
I DON’T UNDERSTAND
I don’t understand electricity. I use it anyway. Every day. My ignorance has little effect on the value of the voltage. Recently, on late night radio, I heard that a light bulb isn’t really a constant light. It’s something like 60 flashes Per second. We see it as a constant. I did a little research and found this. http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/solar-at-home/2011/08/18/how-optical-illusions-can-build-a-better-bulb/ Okay. Got it. Not really. It’s fascinating but, a little above my pay grade. It’s information that sent me racing… Read More
Action, Happiness, Living Fully
A LIFE WELL LIVED
I don’t know if it’s my age, or just matters of circumstance, but I have been faced with what feels like more than the average number of deaths this last year. Close friends, not so close acquaintances, strangers who felt like I knew them, plus the disintegrating health of many older people in my immediate circle. Death and taxes, the only two things we can count on, the old saying goes. And indeed it is true. When I think about… Read More
Emotions, Mindfulness, Truth, Understanding
IN ONE EAR AND OUT THE OTHER?
It’s an expression we hear all the time. It usually has a “Don’t let it bother you” tacked on at the beginning or the end. You know, “Don’t let it bother you. In one ear and out the other.” The problem I have with this philosophy is not the letting go part. It’s not the not holding on to grudges, making more of what people say than perhaps they mean, attaching an importance to silly, hurtful or just lame… Read More
HOW COULD HE?
My name is Paul and I’m an alcoholic. Those words were the key to a new freedom and a new happiness for me. I gratefully accepting the help I was given by other recovering drunks and took them at their word when they told me I could never drink like other people. The wagon was the only reliable option. You’re taught that right away. Old Timer: “Fact. The first drink gets you drunk.” Newcomer: “Uh, okay. Whaddaya mean?” Old Timer:… Read More
WHOSE FAULT IS IT ANYWAY?
It would be hard to let the death of Phillip Seymour Hoffman go without anymore mention on this site. Is it just me, or does anyone else find the amount of attention this is getting to be more than average? We do lose celebrities – sad but true. Some of natural causes and others as my husband says, of “misadventure.” PSH is not the first star to overdose. But perhaps he is the one with the most gravitas, the most… Read More
Ego, Gratitude, Living Fully, Mindfulness
THE ILLUSION OF TOP BANANA
I’m making up a new word. Dis-attractive. It’s to describe the highly addictive cyber candy right there at our fingertips every day. You can open up your browser and lose yourself in the maze of information, gossip, shocking celebrity behavior, fashion disasters or conspiracy theories. It’s Alice down the rabbit hole of “Search”. It’s an easy place to miss-place huge hunks of our lives. And there is little on line more compelling than the sight of our own name in… Read More
SPEECHLESS WITH SADNESS
Not a common state for either one of us. We were working on our book when the phone alert from CNN announced the tragic death of Phillip Seymour Hoffman of a heroin overdose. He was clean for years, relapsed and now he’s gone at forty-six. One of our greatest actors. Father of three young children. His best years clearly ahead of him. Heroin takes another soul. R.I.P. “The mentality and behavior of drug addicts and alcoholics is wholly irrational… Read More
Ego, Emotions, Gratitude, Guides, Living Fully
SECOND BANANA SYNDROME
second banana noun Informal. 1. a comic who supports the leading comedian, often as a straight man, especially in burlesque or vaudeville. 2. any person who plays a secondary role or serves in a subsidiary capacity. This is a very interesting blog for me to write, especially this week. But I have been thinking if not this week – when? I’m writing it for several reasons; the first might be selfish, as I discover much about myself when… Read More
Action, Addictions, Bravery, Courage, Ego, Risk
THE COMPETITIVE SPIRIT
I’m not usually competitive. I don’t play most sports for obvious reasons. Age, height and weight combined with minimal hand-eye coordination have kept me comfortably on the sidelines. I do love golf but have never really been good enough to get all, “I’m gonna kick some ass out there today!’” about it. My greatest opponent on the golf course resides just under my hat and right between my ears. Like most golfers, I’m my own worst enemy. Too many swing… Read More